Colonial Office
Ref: 54145/1/47
Secretariat File No: 39/581/46
No: 59
Port Administration
GOVERNMENT HOUSE,
HONG KONG
R
O March, 1948.
Co
Ansid (7)
Sir,
(6) a '47 file
I have the honour to refer to your confidential despatch No. 217 of 24th June, 1947, on the subject of the Report of the Port Administration Inquiry Committee. The Port Committee was appointed with effect from the 17th February, 1947, on the lines of the proposals
I have
(15).. 'b file set out in Sir Mark Young's despatch of 11th December, 1946.
L
noted that the position should be reviewed about June, 1950.
2. In paragraph 3 of your despatch you have suggested that the Chairman of the Committee should be a senior official of the Secretariat. When the Committee was appointed, the Chairman was elected by the members at their first meeting. The Colonial Secretary discussed the advisability of continuing this arrangement with the unofficial members and it was clear that they would prefer that there should be no change. It would be difficult to spare a senior officer from the Secretariat for these duties which would take up a considerable part of his time and would necessitate his acquiring a wider knowledge of the detailed working of the port than the performance of his normal duties would permit. It has, however, been decided that the junior officer in the Secretariat dealing with port matters should act as secretary of the Committee. The unofficial members would have been very ready to have the present Director of Marine as their ex-officio chairman, but it was realised that Mr. Jolly could not remain in Hong Kong indefinitely and that it would be advisable not to alter the original decision.
3.
I am in agreement with these views and would advise that the election of the Chairman by the members should continue.
40 As regards the composition of the committee, efforts have been made to obtain from the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, the nomination of a second Chinese member. The Chamber's reply is that it is satisfied with its existing representation and does not wish to nominate another member. The Port Committee's view is that another Chinese member is not required since the existing one has the full confidence of the Chinese commercial interests concerned with the Port. As the Chinese interests appear to be satisfied with the present constitution and have declined the opportunity of nominating a second member, I am not inclined to press the matter further, but will be prepared to re-open it if the Chinese Chamber takes the initiative in asking for reconsideration.
5. The proposal to include a representative of labour interests is one which has my sympathy, but which is not easy in practical applica- tion. The Hong Kong Seamen's Union is the body to which I would naturally tumn for nominations. The practice here has been for Union officials to be men actually working in the trades which they represent. Union representatives are, generally speaking, workers, not lawyers, students, or politicians. This is a feature which will now become crystallized in local Trade Union practice in view of section 13 of The Trade Unions and Trade Disputes Ordinance, No. 8 of 1948, enacted on 11th March, 1948. The effect of this is to raise the language difficulty: complete ignorance, on the part of one member of the Committee, of either written or spoken English, would be a grave handicap both to discussion at meetings and to the circulation of papers.
THE RIGHT HONOURABLE
A. CREECH JONES, M.P.
RECEIVED
30 MAX O
C. O. REGY
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